


Fall

by AngelBless



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Canon Typical Violence, Gen, Headaches & Migraines, Vomiting, poor noct has a rough time, reassuring gladio cuddles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-01
Updated: 2018-01-01
Packaged: 2019-02-26 08:37:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,861
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13232079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelBless/pseuds/AngelBless
Summary: Noctis gets reckless during a fight with some fiesty daggerquills. Gladio’s there to help the best he can.~kinkmeme fill: Noctis passes out/collapses because of Stasis, and wakes up in the arms of one of his Bros, where he is very content to remain until the headache passes~





	Fall

**Author's Note:**

> First official kinkmeme fill! :D The last one was a self-fill so I don't count that xP Previously posted this to my tumblr a week or so ago~ Hope you enjoy, and happy new year, everyone!

Noctis outright hated fighting aerial enemies. He could maybe land one or two strikes whenever one of the damned creatures would venture down close enough to the ground to attack, but for the most part, he frustratedly chased after them in the air, dancing and warping around amidst a haze of blue as he fought to throw his blade just that  _ little _ bit quicker, so he could actually catch one of the little pests. He hated expending his magic on them, but there was frustratingly little choice.

He was pretty sure none of his friends liked airborne enemies either, really—except Prompto. Having long range weaponry seemed to add a level of enjoyment as he used them for target practise. None of his bullets packed quite the punch of a sword to the throat, however.

Today’s unwelcome targets were daggerquills, and quite a number of them, too. The four of them had been tasked with thinning out their growing numbers, which seemed fine in theory...until they spied how many of them there actually was. It had become increasingly clear  _ why _ it was such an urgent job when the tipster requested their help.

“Fifteen!” Prompto called out excitedly, fist bumping the air as another one fell to the ground, completely devoid of life. Noct wiped the sheen of sweat on his forehead away, only to frown as it was replaced far too quickly. It was too hot for this, too dusty. It felt as if he had half a desert’s worth of sand in his eyes, nose and mouth after kicking up so much dust during the assault. “How about you, Noct?”

The prince rolled his eyes, unwilling to give an answer. In truth, he’d lost count, but he knew it wasn’t as many as the gunner had managed. There were quite a few left. It wasn’t a competition, but he still wanted to even out the score.

Readying his blade, he threw it towards one of the birds, following it in a blue shimmer, only barely catching its tail feathers as he ground to a halt midair. Twisting around, he threw his weapon once more, hoping the closed gap between them would lead for an easy kill. This damn bird seemed to know what he was planning as it circled back around, lunging towards Noct as his warp ended. A quick flash of blue and he’d successfully phased through the attack, slicing the daggerquill in two before warping off once more towards his next target.

Ignis threw his daggers at any of the creatures that happened to come within range, casually dismissing and recalling them from the armiger as each blow landed with skilled precision. His eyes darted about the battlefield, keeping stock of the others’ activities. Gladio seemed to be the most out of sorts, unable to reach the kind of heights needed to catch the little devils, but for any that  _ did _ happen to be caught by his mighty greatsword...well, Ignis doubted there would be any indication left of what they once were.

“Get back here!” Noct hissed, seemingly chasing down one particular opponent with a tenacity that brought Ignis’ hand up to his face in mild despair. Of all the things for the young prince to get so worked up about, of course it was one measly bird with a high aptitude for dodging. Turning his attention back to his own fight, he smoothly dodged an attack, calling his spear and slamming it into the daggerquill’s chest. He took count of the remaining creatures—six or so more to go, by the looks of things. The air was dusty, so he could have been mistaken, but it was certainly a manageable number.

Noctis wasn’t sure how long he’d spent in the air by this point. His head was spinning as he constantly twisted around, attention darting about everywhere at once. He was warping every few seconds by this point, when he wasn’t dodging any opportunistic attacks. He blinked hard, shaking his head briefly as a dull ringing formed in his ears. The damned birds must’ve sent his head funny with all their screeching. His eyes refocused through the increasingly dust-laden air and he spied his next target. Ignoring the pounding of his heartbeat in his ears growing louder, he threw the weapon, following it once more.

Letting out a short irritated breath as he missed it, he span around in midair once more, regretting the motion as the scenery distorted around him, despite how high up he was. One more throw. If he took it out then and there, then he could take a break. He just needed to  _ catch _ the damned thing first. Sword thrown yet again, his body seemed to follow it almost reluctantly, the ache in his head pressing down hard behind his eyes.

He hit it though, he was sure he did. Its death shriek was barely audible above the now intolerable din in his ears, but he  _ felt _ the sword make contact, even if his vision was a bit all over the place. Now he just had to...get down. Yeah he could do that. Weapon now somewhat slack in his grip, the pressure behind his eyes became unbearable, consuming his vision piece by piece as everything suddenly went quieter, far more echoey than before. His blade faded to nothing. Weightlessness consumed him as everything dissolved to black.

 

Ignis was the first to see Noctis fall. He called out the prince’s name, landing a final slice in the daggerquill he was fighting before rushing over, but Gladio was already there, sprinting to where his charge was plummeting. Arms outstretched, he managed to catch Noct with ease, frowning at the pained expression etched on the young man’s face, even while unconscious. Settling him to the ground, Ignis approached as Prompto stumbled his way over.

“Shit, is he okay?!” the blond said, panic settled into his voice. Gladio cast Ignis a brief look.

“I got him, Iggy. Take care of the rest.” A brief pause before the advisor nodded stiffly in reply, moving to pick off the remaining birds. Gladio turned his gaze to Prompto. “You just gonna leave him to it?”

“But what about—”

“He’ll be fine.  _ Go! _ ”

Prompto jumped at the agitation in the shield’s voice, darting past him and taking aim once more. Gladio let out a long sigh, resting Noct’s head on his lap, his frown deepening at the small pained noises the prince made. “You’re such an idiot,” he muttered, running a hand through his black hair in hopes of comforting him somewhat.

 

As the complete mess of colours assaulting Noct’s darkened vision faded, the first thing to hit him was pain. A  _ lot _ of pain. It felt as if a garula had sat on his head, crushing down on every part of it. Everything seemed far too bright for that, though. He didn’t care for whatever was waiting for him when he opened his eyes—he was pretty sure it was going to blind him the moment he dared to peek.

The second thing was that awful ringing piercing his ears. Was it an alarm or something? The guys’ idea of a joke to wake him up? He just wanted it to stop, but his limbs were too heavy to do anything about it.

The third thing was a voice. Or...two voices? The ringing was thankfully fading, but everything was muddling together; he couldn’t pick any of it apart as it collided into one thoroughly unpleasant din. They were getting clearer though. Did he hear his name? Letting out a groan, he made a weak attempt of sitting up, failing miserably yet still not attempting to open his eyes. He really didn’t want to deal with the brightness that was waiting for him.

“Noct? You back with us?” A gruff voice spoke the first words he could properly decipher. “Come on, you can do it.”

Finally, he pried his eyes open, just a little. There was nothing but instant regret as he forced them shut again, tighter than before, the stabbing pain in the back of his eyes only somehow getting  _ worse _ . What was going on? Everything was fuzzy. He remembered...flying? Was that a dream?

“He okay?” A slightly nervous voice called out from a small distance away.

“Give him a few, he will be,” the deeper voice called back. The light stabbing its way through his eyelids darkened, and he cautiously opened them once more. His vision was hazy, everything shifting out of focus far too much, with far too much contrast and saturation to be normal. None of it felt real. He could see Gladio looking down at him, his hand raised overhead to block out the sun. “Gave us a scare there, kid.” Noct let out a weak noise as he saw the relieved smile on Gladio’s face.

He moved to sit upright, albeit a little more clumsily than he would have liked. The landscape twisted around him—it felt like his stomach had done a flip in protest. The pounding in his head only growing more aggressive, he threatened to tip over as arms wrapped securely around him, holding him in place. An elixir was placed in his shaky hand as he shattered it without much thought. It did little to ease anything as he slumped in the larger man’s hold, burying his head into his chest. A hand smoothed through his hair. “Take it easy, yeah? It’s okay, I got ya.”

This didn’t feel right. Gladio was never this gentle around him, usually he was getting mad at whatever Noct had done wrong.

What  _ had _ he done, exactly? They were outside, and his head hurt like Titan himself had thrown a rock at him. Wait, there were some birds? Did he get knocked out by one of them? He was in the air a lot—

A whimper escaped him as an especially sharp stab to the back of his eyes almost knocked the wind out of him. Gladio’s hold tightened on him, and Noct found himself reaching up to grab a hold of his shield’s arm desperately, willing the pain to go away as he heard the older man speak calm reassurances. It all felt like he was in some kind of bizarre dream. Not that he didn’t greatly appreciate the warm contact.

After far too long, it finally settled, his eyes opening once more, squinting in the light as he realised how short and sharp his breaths had become. An unearthly haze had filtered its way into the center of his vision, firmly planted and pulsating with an array of colours, making entire rock formations disappear before his eyes. Sucking in a breath, he curled up further, scrunching his eyes shut.

“You okay?” Gladio asked quietly. Well, Noct assumed it to be quiet, but it still managed to bounce its way around his skull like a megaphone.

“Can’t see right,” he finally replied, words slurred somewhat as he swallowed hard, a feeling of nausea rising up within him.

“Migraine, huh?” Gladio said with a small snort of air. “Stasis is still as much of a bitch as ever, I see.”

Stasis? Wait, is that why…

Everything fell into place—why his head hurt so much, why Gladio was being so careful with him. Bits and pieces of the fight finally came back to him, questions forming in his aching mind. “Wh...where’s Iggy and Prompto?” he finally asked, drawing in deep breaths through his nose as his stomach refused to still.

“Iggy’s gone back to the car to grab a few things,” Gladio explained. “Prompto’s keeping an eye out for any other unwelcome guests.”

“Right…” Noct mumbled. On hearing his name, Prompto approached, crouching down to get a good look at his friend.

“You okay dude?” he asked gently, running a hand through Noct’s hair. “You look rough as hell.”

“Uh-huh,” he replied, lacking the energy to argue the fact. He overheard Gladio telling Prompto to stay on watch—or something like that—before his friend left once more. Damnit, he felt so tired, but his body refused to let him settle, keeping him from being pulled under. He remained still, eyes closed, focusing hard on not being sick. He was pretty sure it was a losing battle. Gladio must had figured him out, if the hand rubbing circles into his back was anything to go by. “Make it stop…” he whimpered, tensing up further around the shield’s arm. He thought he heard Gladio apologise, but his heart was pounding too fast—too loudly—he wasn’t sure.

Damnit, he just wanted this to be  _ over _ . He had to admit, though, it felt a lot more reassuring having his shield’s unwavering form by him, keeping him grounded when it felt as if he would be buried under the crushing pressure he felt. Now if only he didn’t feel as if his head were about to split in two, this might actually be quite nice.

His hand shot up to his mouth as his stomach lurched. Hunching over, Gladio guided him as he threw up, heaving and gasping for air. He knew he’d just have to ride it out, but was it  _ always _ supposed to be this awful? Had his dad, or any of the other kings of Lucis dealt with this crap every time they used too much magic at once? “That’s it, let it out.” The hand remained on his back, continuing its circular motion. He felt too heavy and too light, too hot and too cold, all at once. Like he was drifting away to nothing.

The next thing he knew, Ignis’ voice had cut through the fog in his brain, and everything seemed darker once again. The pressure on his head felt more...real than before? Opening his eyes, he realised he now donned his baseball cap. A small smile met his lips as he dazedly thought about how  _ wonderful _ hats were.

“Something amusing you, Noct?” Ignis asked casually as he pulled out a water bottle and some pills. Noctis blinked slowly in confusion, the uncomfortable pulling sensation in his eyes becoming more apparent as everything still looked far too high contrast.

“You’re...back?” he said, surprise creeping in, even past his fatigue.

“Have been for around ten minutes. You were dead to the world for short while there, I’m afraid,” the advisor replied, holding out the pills. “I believe you’re finally over the worst of it, but these should help ease the remainder.” Noct took the pills and more than thankfully downed the entire bottle of water. His throat felt like shit, but at least his stomach didn’t hate him so much anymore.

“Back with us again, buddy?” Prompto asked, jogging up to them, still casting his eyes around for any danger as he spoke. He nodded weakly in reply, wincing a little at the pain that shot through his skull. Prompto looked up to the sky. “The sun’s starting to get low, we gonna head back soon?” Noct scowled at the thought. Gladio was still holding onto him in a warm, comforting hug; he was too comfy cuddling up to his shield for all that icky  _ moving about _ business.

“Has the dizziness subsided?” Ignis asked, leaning into Noctis’ view, a hand placed briefly to his forehead.

“Y-yeah. I think. Everything looks kinda weird.” He was pretty sure it wasn’t dizziness he was dealing with, everything just...shimmered. Like nothing would stay in place, but it was nowhere near as bad as the dizziness he’d felt before.

“Merely a sign that your migraine is dissipating,” Ignis said, a small sigh of relief escaping his lips as he stood up. “Should be safe to head back now. Gladio, if you’d be so kind.”

The shield grunted, releasing his hold on the prince. Noct tensed, wavering slightly at the sudden lack of support, before Gladio lifted him up with ease, beginning their trek back to the car.

“So,” Prompto began awkwardly. “He’s not gonna like, puke up anymore, is he?”

“Not if he behaves himself,” Ignis said. “But I’ll be sure to give you plenty of notice, should it happen again.”

“Right,” the gunner replied with a nervous laugh. After a few seconds of silence, he finally spoke again, arms moving behind his head. “Can’t wait to get that reward and sleep somewhere decent tonight.” He smiled at the thought of warm soft beds with big snuggly duvets to curl up under.

“I do believe it’s well deserved,” Ignis said, pushing his glasses further up the bridge of his nose. “And I believe some, more than others, would benefit from a good night’s rest.” His gaze had shifted to Noct, whose head was tucked up by Gladio’s neck, fast asleep by the gentle rocking motion as they walked.

They would be sure to have some words with the prince about showing more restraint in battle, but it was clear he’d suffered enough for his recklessness for the moment. And right now, getting back to civilization and retiring for the day was a much more palatable idea than any lecture he could have conjured up for the young prince.

**Author's Note:**

> Hoping to work on more kinkmeme prompts in the future. We'll see how it goes~ Thanks so much for reading! <3
> 
> ~For updates and fandom stuff, check out my [art/writing](http://doodlebless.tumblr.com) and [fandom](http://angel-bless.tumblr.com) blogs. Also on [twitter](https://twitter.com/angel_bless) too!~


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